I Didn't . . .

. . . have much to say about Texas Ranger Michael Young winning the MVP in the All Star game last night. The guy, although a great player, bores me to death like most baseball players do. But this is a cool pic.

One More Global Instability Thought

I'm not sure I've ever seen things this tense. We have: - The war in Iraq - The U.S. military presence in Afghanistan - North Korea firing off missiles - Iran doing its own saber rattling - Israel and the Palestinians in conflict

Hold Your Breath

Things are getting a bit crazy in the Middle East as Israel rolled into parts of Lebanon today after two of its soldiers were kidnapped. Watch out for the reaction of Syria and Iran, both of which would love to see Israel wiped off the face of the earth. I'll say what I've said before: The Iraq war would look like a fire drill if the battle between Israel and the Palestinians spirals out of control.

Heidi Klum: Hottest Pregnant Women In The History Of Ever

It's Good To Be A Parent. Right?

Explanation. I guess.

Party Girl?

I Wonder If Any Wise County Teachers Consider Teaching At Northwest

"When Northwest ISD leaders set their starting teacher salary at $44,159, they touched off a statewide bidding war for new teachers. The district north of Fort Worth set the bar high for the upcoming school year with what may be the state's highest salary for new teachers." (Dallas Morning News story).

I Hate Thinking In The Mornings

The Ticket played some of a just released Johnny Cash album called American V: A Hundred Highways. It has been described as "captur[ing] a legend of American music reflecting on what he knew and understood was an inevitable death with dignity, sadness, and hope. " And it gave rise to a great discussion: Why does our society want a person to hide when he is no longer on the top of game? Athletes should retire, singers should stop singing, etc. We value youth and energy, it seems, but not old age. And that's wrong.

A Dot Com For Everything

I heard and read reports that slain real estate agent Sarah Anne Walker was a member of www.millionairematch.com. I didn't know there was such a site.

I Think I'll Go Out This Way

Rocky Balboa / Rocky VI Trailer

Ya know, it doesn't look bad at all.

This Is Just Dumb

"The House passed legislation Tuesday that would prevent gamblers from using credit cards to bet online and could block access to gambling Web sites. "The legislation would clarify and update current law to spell out that most gambling is illegal online. But there would be exceptions — for state-run lotteries and horse racing — and passage isn't a safe bet in the Senate, where Republican leaders have not considered the measure a high priority." (more) It's our money. We earned it. We should be able to do with it whatever we so desire. And it is no business of government to tell us otherwise.

Let's Head To Dallas

This girl, Playboy model Robin Arcuri, will be galavanting about Pegasus Plaza, at the corner of Akard and Main streets [in downtown Dallas] from noon till 1 p.m. today. She will be out in the city streets protesting Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which is pitching its tent at the American Airlines Center July 26 to August 6. According to a release sent out by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (that’s PETA to you), Arcuri will be clad in "nothing but shackles and covered in ’scars’ as a result of violent ‘beatings’–an everyday reality for animals in circuses.” You go girl. (Source)

Baseball Nugget

There are 18 starting players in tonight's all-star game. Ex-Rangers account for 22.22% of the combined NL and AL starters (4 out of 18): Kenny Rogers, Alex Rodriquez, Ivan Rodriguez, and Alfonso Soriano.

Kate Hudson

Although I'm not sure about that new "You, Me, and Dupree" movie.

Bomb Blasts and Name Changes

A bunch of bombs went off in India today killing quite a few. Oddity: Did you know that Bombay is no longer called Bombay. It's now "Mumbai". Some media outlets didn't get the memo. Here's a news search for Mumbai and here's one for Bombay.

ESPN's Top Two Goals of the 2006 World Cup

Trust me on this. Yeah, soccer is boring but you have to check out these two goals. If you think catching a ball with your chest and then kicking it before it hits the ground is easy, then think again.

I Had No Idea

Thanks to a commenter for pointing out that today is the First Anniversary of The Blog. I completely missed it. Scary fact: This makes the 2,616 post. Heck, I think I'll go back to Skattershooting on The Muse.

(And I have no idea why I like this pic. It's from the movie Collateral - specifically from a "shoot em up" club scene where the song "Ready, Steady, Go" is playing. I like it for a reason I can't explain.)